Weighted golf club training devices are well known in the prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,026,063 to Rhodes on Jun. 25, 1991, discloses a golf club with a shaft having at one end a hand grip, and at the other end having a weight. Such a device is swung by a golfer in a conventional way, whereby the weighted end causes the shaft to flex considerably more than a conventional golf club would. Such flexing of the shaft results in an exaggerated tactile feel, giving the golfer an improved awareness of the feel of a proper golf swing. Miyamoto, in his U.S. Pat. No. 4,118,033 issued on Oct. 3, 1978, discloses a similar device, as does Atkinson in his U.S. Pat. No. 3,428,325 issued on Feb. 18, 1969. Such devices, while perhaps well suited to certain golf club swinging styles and golfers, do not account for an optimized shaft flexibility and length. Indeed, the flexible shaft of the Atkinson device is designed to stretch to varying lengths during the swing.
An improved device, taught in U.S. Pat. No. 4,602,788 to Wendt on Jul. 29, 1986, includes a stack of weights on the end of a conventional shaft. A retaining means holds the weights in place, and allows for a variable number of weights to be secured to the end of the shaft. As such, the optimal weight for a particular golfer at a particular time in the golfer's skill development may be set on the shaft. Clear advantages are seen in such a device, yet such a device still does not provide for variable shaft length. As such, while an optimal weight may be set for a particular golfer, the shaft length cannot be changed in such a device. Such variable shaft length can be useful when concentrating on and learning particular aspects of the golf swing. Further, such a device has the disadvantage that the rigid weights at the end of the shaft, which may be moving at considerable speeds during a golf swing, may cause injury if striking the golfer or a bystander.
Providing for adjustable shaft length has the advantage of allowing the golfer to set the length of the shaft as to optimize the effectiveness of the device. For example, with the overall length of the device set to just fit between the outside of one arm and the wrist of the extended other arm, and with the shaft flexibility and end weight set accordingly, the end of the club lightly touches the golfer at the backswing and foreswing follow-through of a properly executed golf swing. Clearly, then, there is a need for a golf swing training device that allows for variable shaft length and teaches the proper shaft length for each individual golfer. Such a needed device would allow for relatively quick adjustment, and would provide an optimal shaft flexibility and weight. Further, such a needed device would not cause injury if aggressively contacting another person, and would provide additional feedback means for the golfer. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides further related advantages.